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"Two Boats and a Lifeguard"

Air date

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Directed by

"Two Boats and a Lifeguard" is the eighth episode of Season 2 of Boardwalk Empire, and the 20th episode overall. It was written by executive producer and series creator Terence Winter and was directed by executive producer Tim Van Patten. It aired on 13 November 2011.

Contents

Nucky Thompson has problems on multiple fronts. Since his brush with death he is having strange dreams and getting little sleep. Margaret Schroeder is worried about her sick daughter and the safety of Nucky and her family after the shooting. Esther Randolph continues to build the legal case against him. He confirms that Jimmy Darmody is behind the assassination attempt. Finally his father, Ethan Thompson, dies. Nucky takes advice from Johnny Torrio and Arnold Rothstein and decides to feign retirement and go to Ireland to raise funds for a counterattack. He asks Chalky White to orchestrate a strike by African American workers while he is gone.

Jimmy faces mounting frustration with his allies: Manny Horvitz is pressuring him for money; Mickey Doyle continues to irritate him; his wife Angela forces him to be honest with her about his business dealings; and he is deaf to warnings about Nucky from Eli Thompson. He loses control at a victory party after Nucky's retirement and throws Mickey from the balcony onto a table in front of Manny. Angela attends a different party and kisses a new acquaintance, Louise.

"I make my living, Mr. Thompson, in large part as a gambler. Some days I make 20 bets, some days I make none. There are weeks, sometimes months in fact, when I don't make any bet at all because there is simply no play. So I wait, plan, marshal my resources, and when I finally see my opportunity and there is a bet to make... I bet it all." (Arnold Rothstein)